Separate fact from fiction with credible information about the causes and symptoms of chronic illness as well as valuable insights into how food affects your overall health and wellness.

Cholesterol

It may surprise you to know that cholesterol itself isn’t bad. In fact, cholesterol is just one of the many substances created and used by our bodies to keep us healthy. Some of the cholesterol we need is produced naturally (and can be affected by your family health history), while some of it comes from the food we eat.

LDL and HDL Cholesterol: What’s Bad and What’s Good?

Cholesterol can’t dissolve in the blood. It has to be transported to and from the cells by carriers called lipoproteins. Low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, is known as “bad” cholesterol. High-density lipoprotein, or HDL, is known as “good” cholesterol. These two types of lipids, along with triglycerides and Lp(a) cholesterol, make up your total cholesterol count, which can be determined through a blood test.

LDL (Bad) Cholesterol

High levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol circulating in the blood can slowly build up in the inner walls of the arteries that feed the heart and brain. Together with other substances, it can form plaque, a thick, hard deposit that can narrow the arteries and make them less flexible. This condition is known as atherosclerosis. Heart attack or stroke can result from a clot forming in and blocking a narrowed artery.

HDL (good) Cholesterol

One-fourth to one-third of blood cholesterol is carried by high-density lipoprotein (HDL). HDL cholesterol is known as “good” cholesterol, because high levels of HDL seem to protect against heart attack. Low levels of HDL (less than 40 mg/dL) also increase the risk of heart disease. Medical experts think that HDL tends to carry cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it’s passed from the body. Some experts believe that HDL removes excess cholesterol from arterial plaque, slowing its buildup.

Triglycerides

Triglyceride is a form of fat made in the body. Elevated triglycerides can be due to overweight/obesity, physical inactivity, cigarette smoking, excess alcohol consumption and a diet very high in carbohydrates (60 percent of total calories or more). People with high triglycerides often have a high total cholesterol level, including a high LDL (bad) level and a low HDL (good) level. Many people with heart disease and/or diabetes also have high triglyceride levels.

Lp(a) Cholesterol

Lp(a) is a genetic variation of LDL (bad) cholesterol. A high level of Lp(a) is a significant risk factor for the premature development of fatty deposits in arteries. Lp(a) isn’t fully understood, but it may interact with substances found in artery walls and contribute to the buildup of fatty deposits.

The Two Sources of Cholesterol

Cholesterol comes from two sources: your body and food. Your liver and other cells in your body make about 75 percent of blood cholesterol. The other 25 percent comes from the foods you eat.

LDL cholesterol is produced naturally by the body, but many people inherit genes from their mother, father or even grandparents that cause them to make too much. Eating saturated fat, trans fats and dietary cholesterol also increases how much you have. If high blood cholesterol runs in your family, lifestyle modifications may not be enough to help lower your LDL blood cholesterol. Everyone is different, so work with your doctor to find a treatment plan that’s best for you.

Thank you for visiting montgomeryheart.com (our Site). We appreciate the opportunity to interact with you on the Internet and are committed to protecting and safeguarding your privacy. The purpose of this Privacy Statement is to inform you about the types of information we might collect about you when you visit our Site, how we may use that information and whether we disclose that information to anyone.

What Information We Collect and How We Use It

Any information we collect on our Site generally falls into the Personally Identifiable Information category.

Personally Identifiable Information refers to information that lets us know specifically who you are. In general, you can visit our Site without telling us who you are or revealing any Personally Identifiable Information.

Ordering

When you place an order for products or services, we collect Personally Identifiable Information (such as name, contact and billing information, credit card, and other transaction information). We use this information to deliver your order, process payment and to communicate with you about the status of your order. Credit card information submitted with your order is used only for payment processing and is not retained on our Site. You may request your purchase be shipped by common carrier, in which case certain information will be shared with the respective carrier for delivery purposes.

Sharing Your Information

Except as disclosed in this Privacy Statement, we do not sell, trade, rent or otherwise retransmit any Personally Identifiable Information we collect online unless we have your permission. Any Personally Identifiable Information you provide to us will be used for your purchases and retained in hard copy form of the original invoice as well as within our database system, which generates our invoices.

From time to time, we may be required to provide Personally Identifiable Information in response to court order, subpoena, or government investigation. We also reserve the right to report to law enforcement agencies any activities that we in good faith believe to be unlawful. We may release Personally Identifiable Information when we believe that such release is reasonably necessary to enforce or apply our Limited Warranty or to protect the rights, property, and safety of others and ourselves.

Links To Other Web Sites

Links to third-party Web sites may be provided solely for your information and convenience, or to provide additional information for various other goods and services. If you use these links, you will leave our Site. This Privacy Statement does not cover the information practices of those Web sites linked to our Site, nor do we control their content or privacy policies. We suggest that you carefully review the privacy policies of each site you visit.

Changes To This Statement

Any updates or changes to the terms of this Privacy Statement will be posted here on our Site and the date of the newest version posted below. Please check back frequently, especially before you submit any Personally Identifiable Information at our Site, to see if this Privacy Statement has changed.

By using our Site, you acknowledge acceptance of this Privacy Statement in effect at the time of use.

Contact Us

If you have any concerns about our use of your information or about this Privacy Statement, please send an e-mail via our contact form [link to contact page]. We will make every reasonable effort to address your concerns and remedy any problems you bring to our attention.

This Privacy Statement was last revised on December 20, 2011.

Montgomery Heart & Wellness Website Refund Policy

If you desire a refund for a product from Montgomery Heart & Wellness, you can return the unused and unopened product and receive credit for the amount you were charged for that product. You can use this credit for any product or service we offer. We do not give monetary refunds.

Montgomery Heart & Wellness Website Refund Policy

If you desire a refund for a product from Montgomery Heart & Wellness, you can return the unused and unopened product and receive credit for the amount you were charged for that product. You can use this credit for any product or service we offer. We do not give monetary refunds.